What's Up Guys,
Another week has passed, and I love this time that I get to spend with you guys each week, sharing what's going on at Kairos, my ever growing fascination with creating new dishes, and the things that God is teaching me along this journey! I have been working on a cookbook for over a year, and this week I finally got the first chapter finished, and I'm alomost done with the second chapter. The rest should be a breeze, because I've already got the outline done and I just need to fill in the recipes. Hopefully, we'll see a finished product in the very near future!
I'm also excited to tell you that next week we are going to start selling a few of our most requested Kreations to you at the Hostess Stand. J.J.'s Original Honeymustard, J.J.'s Fire (medium hot sauce), and our BBQ Sauce to get it started, along with bags of Kairos "Kroutons". If you've ever tasted these little savory swirls of goodness, then you know that you and your family are in for a treat! I put them on top of most of my soups, and use them to garnish the salads. I've had alot of people comment "I don't know what they are, but they sure are good!" Several months ago, I was testing out different garnishes for my soups, and after alot of trial and error, I came up with this one, which has been a winner! The great part for me is that I really wanted some sort of crouton or something crunchy to go on the salads, and this one filled my need! They start out as flour tortillas, but they end up as a culinary delight that is unique to Kairos Kafe. Some of the folks on my staff eat them like fritos... the reason I thought it would be neat to bag them!
I have gotten alot of feedback from you about my decision to change some items on the Express Menu. We were doing chicken or meatballs with two small sides for $5.49. I understand Value, and I want to have a quick, cheap selection on the menu, but the truth is, I was losing money on those Express Meals, so we decided it would be better to just give you one regular side to make it more fair. One of my Values is to "To Provide a Superior Product at a Fair Price" and I intend to honor those values, but the way we were doing it was not a fair price on my end of the deal. Thank you for your understanding.
We are getting excited about the upcoming Easter Buffet, and I can't wait until we get closer and can start cooking up a storm. This year is gonna be an extra special one because my Grandmother (my cooking inspiration and author of Granny's Rolls) will be here this year. I hope that some of you get to meet her! Please go ahead and make a reservation if you're planning to come, though, because last year for Mother's Day we had to turn some people down because we ran out of room. We also had some technical difficulties with the Buffet because the line moved too slow, but we have re-thought that and have moved the buffet into the auditortium so that it's bigger, more accessible, and people are able to go down both sides. We tried it on Father's Day and it worked out very nicely.
The Specials this week start with one of my first Kairos Recipes: Marian's Meat Baked Ziti. It is similar to Lasagna, it actually has the very same ingredients, only the pasta is shaped different. I love this one because you get all that comforting, delicious goodness without having to fight the big noodles. The fish is a new concept that I dreamed up...Salmon with a BBQ-Bacon Glaze... mmm, everything tastes better with bacon, and I can't wait to get your feedback on this one. The T.G.I.H Special (Thank God, It's Healthy) is my interpretation of a spinach salad with hot bacon dressing. I absolutely love this recipe, and I know you will like it, too! After rendering the bacon, the pan is deglazed with my Honeymustard Sauce, and the taste and smell is out of this world.
For as long as I live, when I mention Honeymustard, I will always think about an experience that I had with God about our Honeymustard...I didn't always make it myself, I ordered it from Texas Pete's. I learned this at Leonardo's from the Chef, William Reed. He used it on his Fried Lobster Tails. I loved this sauce because it was different than most traditional honeymustards, and it tasted wonderful on everything. When I made the menu for Kairos, it was the crown of my grilled chicken tenderloins because it was the first one I came up with due to a cooking disaster at a wedding I catered. (That's another story)
By the time we opened in 2006, for some reason unknown to me, Texas Pete discontinued selling their Honeymustard in the South due to what they called a lack of demand. I just googled it, found a website, and started ordering it directly from Texas Pete. Then, in 2008, we had that crisis over gas, and the price of gas went through the roof. When I ordered honeymustard, the shipping was eighty dollars. We were a new business, struggling to survive at that point, and there was no way I could pay that much for honeymustard.
So, after thinking about it and praying about it, I decided I would make my own. The first batch was okay, but it wasn't the "J.J.'s Original Chicken Tenderloins" that my customers had grown to love. The first day I got several compliants. I was very discouraged, and really didn't know how to fix it. It's funny because I didn't even really pray about it that evening, but it was bothering me pretty bad.
That night, I'll never forget it, I was in the shower, feeling pretty low. As I was taking a shower, that still small voice spoke to me very gently and matter of factly... "James, you are trying to add honey to mustard, instead you need to add mustard to honey." That may not make sense to you, but it made perfect sense to me... so I went right back at it, changed the approach I was taking to it, and the end result was a product that was better than the stuff I was ordering!
The thought of that made me cry. God cares about Honeymustard. I think about that with absolute amazement. I understand that God cares about our lives, and our health, and even our finances.... but Honeymustard?? The Apostle Paul said "Oh, the depths of the riches of both the Wisdom and Knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his ways!" Why does he care about Honeymustard? Because He cares about me.
I am learning that if we will just ask Him, He will tell us all kinds of things that will blow our minds! Since then, I've learned to ask him about all kinds of stuff that I would have never dreamed of asking before. And the results have been some very interesting things...
May we all know that God cares about each of us, and wants to help us with every detail of our lives, and He just wants us to ask. Pretty simple.
Thank You for supporting Kairos! God Bless You and have a wonderful week!
Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. (The Message)
Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened. (Amplified Bible)
Matthew 7:7-8
Easter 2010 Menu
KAIROS KAFE
building relationships around food...
Starters
Norma’s Mixed Green Salad, Sweet Potato Kobbler
Glynis Gail’s Broccoli Salad, Granny's Grape Salad
Granny's Rolls w/ Spunky Hollow Cream
Entrees
Roasted Turkey, Glazed Ham,
Hamburger Steak, Southern Fried Chicken
Sides
Lenora's Company Potatoes, Grice's Green Beans
Squash Kasserole, Corn Kobbler, Cheese Baked Ziti
Desserts
Momma's Peach Kobbler, Strawberry Kobbler
Luscious Lemon Cake, Kairos Chocolate Krackle
Sunday, April 4th- Seating Starts at 12:30 p.m.
Reservations preferred - Call 251-3101
or e-mail James@KairosKatering.com
15.99 per person plus tax & gratuity 7.99 for kids 10 & under
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